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For our Florida members : The following flyer / petition was circulating around my doctors office this morning, so I thought I would share it. I signed it. You may want to see if it is available in your doctors office, so that Florida residents can sign it. You can also go to a website that I will list at the end of this letter, to Governor Crist. I am also going to place this in the "Aids activism Forum"

Dear Governor Crist,

Big changes have been happening in the Florida Medicaid program----All of them bad for Aids patients.

When the state converted to managed care in Duval and Broward County it made promises to Aids patients it hasn't kept. The state was supposed to have specialized programs for Aids, that have not been implemented. Meantime, the new federal Medicare Drug Benefit is causing many Aids patients to choose between medicines and paying for food or rent.

Now the state is dismantling a disease management program run by a 20-year old non-profit Aids organization and replacing it with a for-profit corporation with little experience providing care for people living with Aids; a company that does not have the best interest of Aids patients at heart.

GOVERNOR CRIST : We appeal to you to stop these abuses. Florida has a huge Aids problem----thousands of new infection every year and tens of thousands of people who are positive and don't know it. The decisions that are being made by your Medicaid Program, are hurting the public health.

Aids Healthcare Foundation (AHF) Positive Healthcare has been serving Aids patients in Florida for eight years. By your own reports, they have saved the state, tens of millions of dollars. The patients are extremely satisfied with the AHF's care. They serve as strong advocates for patients. It is our belief that Florida Medicaid does not want anyone looking at how they care for Aids patients, and that is why AHF is being dropped. THIS OUTRAGE MUST BE REVERSED

Sincerely,

X_________________________________________________ Please sign to show your support